Real Creative Juices- Part Three of Four

Some writers think imagination is like the wind.  It comes, it goes, and we never know for sure when it's going to do either.

It's like getting in your car and waiting for it to turn on all by itself.  You'd be late for a lot of appointments if you went about it that way, wouldn't you?

How about if you remembered to turn the key, but you never put any gas in it?  It still wouldn't start.

Or maybe you let the air filter get gunked up with all sorts of crud.  But, you remembered to turn the key in the ignition and you also put gas in it.  It should still work okay, right?

No.

But wait, the brain is different.  It's not a car.  It's mystical.  It's not really connected to the body.  It just hangs out in a writer's head.

No.

Here's a few things to think about for those of you who want to look a little deeper into the creative process than most writers ever do.  The brain needs a lot of things, but it really uses a lot of sugar.  It needs blood flow. It really needs oxygen, too.  And sleep.

Your brain won't work right if you don't pay attention to those requirements at a bare minimum.

How creative are you when you're dead dog tired?  Remember all those stupid ideas for stories that sounded great until you re-examined them after a good night's sleep.  And ask a diabetic how their brain works when their sugar is off.  Here's two more:  try reducing the oxygen to the brain and see how you function or maybe the blood flow.  Wait, don't really do that.  Do I have to throw in my disclaimer again about don't try this at home?

Don't take me at my word.  Ask Google.  See what kind of results you get.

You're imagination is part of your brain.  Your brain is part of your body.

When writers think about ways to improve their creativity, they never think about how they treat their physical brain.  It's a very bad mistake.

And the cayenne?  It really gets the blood flowing.  Blood carries oxygen and sugar to the brain.  Your brain really likes that.  A happy brain makes it a lot easier to be creative.